South wrestlers look to districts

While Park Hill South’s Chase Gray walked off the wrestling mat of his state championship match last year with a loss that left him with a second place finish. Although he had fallen just short of a title, he had set the school record for the best individual finish at state and already tied the school record for wins in a season with 47. This season Gray has returned to shatter those records and hasn’t been alone in doing so. With an ensemble cast of fellow seniors who have led the Panthers wrestling program to new heights in their four year careers (52-16 in duals), Park Hill South goes into districts this weekend with a chance to add to their already impressive tenure.

“As far as the senior class goes, we are probably the best wrestling group that’s gone through South,” Gray said. “The seniors on this team are unbelievable. I don’t want to hog any of the attention, it’s not just me.”

Joining Gray were eight other seniors who were recognized last week at their final home match against St. Joe Central by a score of 72-6. They included Nesser Barouqa, Tyler Blyth, Kenric Cook, Alex Weatherly, Alex Goforth, Adam Weatherly, Jimmy Carpenter, and Alex Fortuna. For most of them, their journey has been much longer than the four years they had at Park Hill South, but dates back to their earliest days in wrestling.

“I started with the PAC (Parkville Athletic Complex) when I was 10 years old. That really helped me,” Gray said. “I think almost all the seniors on the varsity came from that group. It just came together like that somehow.”

Individually, Gray has broken season and career records for wins, pins, takedowns, and team points, which will continue to increase through the end of the season. Gray talked about how much he thought the program had changed in their four years as well as how he learned of the leadership role he was given when he was the first sophomore to be named a team captain.

“I think the pace of practice has gone up as far as drilling and being united as a team. We’ve all grown closer,” Gray said. “I do think that is pretty cool. My sophomore year, I never thought it could be me. When coach announced it, I was shocked. It was somewhat difficult because some of the older guys didn’t listen to me at first (being so young).”

Park Hill South is hoping to qualify more than a handful of wrestlers for the state tournament next weekend at this weekend’s district tournament including Gray, Jimmy Carpenter, Adam Weatherly, and Alex Weatherly, all of which are currently ranked in the top eight of their respective weight classes. With several key injuries throughout the season, the Panthers see themselves as a team that has yet to fill its potential.

“We have seven seniors with pretty good records right now. As far as dual team-wise, I think we would have done a lot better if we had the whole team the entire year,” Gray said. “We had a couple injuries, but I think we’re back to a full roster now. As long as our team wrestles to our fullest, I think we should be in the running for the district championship.”

Getting second has been a key part of the motivation which has led Gray to a 44-1 record so far this season.  He says last year’s success at state gave him an idea of just how well he could do and he’s excited to earn his way back as well as compete for a team placement as well.

“I think it opened my eyes to if I just worked harder, I could do great things. This year, I tried to make every morning practice and a little on my own, just stay in great shape,” Gray said. “I just want to get there and go to work.”